Surviving Progress [DVD]

Features

• Type: DVD
• Studio: Alliance Films
• Language(s): english
• Subtitle(s): english, french
• Director(s): Harold Crooks, Mathieu Roy
• Actor(s): Margaret Atwood, Colin Beavan, Jane Goodall, Stephen Hawking, Michael Hudson

Surviving Progress presents the story of human advancement as awe-inspiring and double-edged. It reveals the grave risk of running the 21st century?s software - our know-how - on the ancient hardware of our primate brain which hasn?t been upgraded in 50,000 years. With rich imagery and an immersive soundtrack, filmmakers Mathieu Roy and Harold Crooks launch us on a journey to contemplate our evolution from cave-dwellers to space explorers. Technological advancement, economic development, population increase - are they signs of a thriving society? Or too much of a good thing? Executive Produced by Martin Scorsese, this provocative documentary explores the concept of progress in our modern world, guiding us through the major "progress traps" facing our civilization in the arenas of technology, economics, consumption, and the environment. Featuring powerful arguments from such visionaries as Jane Goodall, Margaret Atwood and Stephen Hawking, this enlightening and visually spectacular film invites us to contemplate the progress traps that destroyed past civilizations and that lie treacherously embedded in our own. MIND-EXPANDING... SUBVERSIVE... BRISTLING WITH PROVOCATIVE INSIGHTS. Both brainy and light on its feet, and with wide variety of involving visuals, this mind-expanding ecological documentary bristles with provocative insights and probing questions about humanity and the state of the world. --Kenneth Turan, LA Times A who's-who of great thinkers are riveting as they walk us through the question of whether we will or can survive progress. --Ernest Hardy, Seattle Weekly CRITIC'S CHOICE. EXCELLENT! Succinct and entertaining. Weaves together a vast assortment of materials as well as information, to highly watchable results. Do the earth a favor: see this movie, and drag a skeptic you know along. --Dennis Harvey, San Francisco Bay Guardian "A nourishing, challenging documentary....What a clear plot and beautiful exposition it had [with] Ronald Wright at the helm...as he explored the ideas he wrote about in his book A Short History of Progress." -- Alex Hardy, The Times (London) Special Features Introduction with Martin Scorsese at the New York City Premiere Behind Surviving Progress: Round table discussion with filmmakers at the Montreal International Documentary Festival (in French and English) Extended interviews with Jane Goodall, Ronald Wright, Michael Hudson, and Jim Thomas Interviewee headshot sequence with voice-over by Ronald Wright and Gary Marcus Filmmaker and producer biographies